Sweetest Revenge
by Sober.Little.Girl
Summary: Back in town to upset Lisa's calm life once again, Jackson Rippner finds himself not quite sure of how to tie up this particular loose end. Rating subject to change. One-shot, maybe more.


**HELLO LOVELIES! ITS BEEN YEARS! Hopefully this time around I got it right :D I know the hype for this movie has died down, but I still love it, this is my first foray back into writing for a while, so bear(?) with me!**

**I took some of your advice, and I really hope it worked out for your enjoyment 3  
**

* * *

"Get. It. Fucking. Done. Rippner. You have three days. Get. It. Done."

With that last snarl, the petulant man on the other side of Jack's phone hung up abruptly, leaving him seething with anger. Why he still let Brewer talk to him like that he had no idea. The very thought that the slob even had the audacity to take such a tone with him, made Jack want to rip the man's nose clean off of his face. Well... Maybe not so cleanly.

He was so busy imagining the damage he could do to his "boss's" face he had almost missed sight of her.

She was moving more swiftly these days, even more wary of who she kept company with than before the entire fiasco that had almost ended his career...and his life. Despite all the pain he knew she was feeling, she smiled brightly at everyone from behind her counter, her demeanor always one of stiff nicety. He noticed with a scowl how she used formality to protect herself from everyone else. Sure she was friendly, but she kept a professional distance from all the people in her hotel. He knew that she did it because of him, and it made the scowl disappear to be replaced by a small smile. Greatly, he enjoyed knowing that he'd made such a huge impact on her life.

Especially since the bitch had made such a big one on his.

Jackson watched her silently from the window of the small café tucked inside of the hotel. He took in every detail of her face as Lisa's head slowly pulled up from the reservation book she'd stuck it in and cautiously surveyed the huge lobby. There were dozens of milling people and each one being met with her studious gaze. From even the short time they'd been together he knew what that expression meant. She was looking for something, or some_one_.

He knew that she sensed him, because he could sense her long before he saw her. It was a connection he had felt for a while, an uncomfortable spark... He knew he had to get rid of it. Not only was it getting in the way of work, it was all around annoying.

Loose ends were not an option.

He gently sipped his cup of coffee for a second or two before finally placing it down on the table and standing. As he smoothed out his suit jacket he wondered if she would recognize him. It had been a year since the entire incident and he'd had to change his appearance on account of being caught because of some stupid woman who couldn't follow simple orders and asked way too many questions.

His fake IDs had saved him from questions on his identity, but he'd feigned harsher vocal injury than he actually had so he wouldn't have to answer questions anyway. Quietly, on the night before he was to be released from the hospital to the police, he had escaped and began reconstructing himself, and his reputation.

He'd resorted to everything _except_ plastic surgery to change his appearance, hair dye, a nice tan, glasses and color contacts... And to his slight surprise it had worked marvelously. His voice was even a bit different...It had a bit more of a growl to it since he had healed. A frown graced his statuesque features, the memory of the pen jabbing into his throat flashing to the forefront of his mind. With a slight huff he blinked the pain away.

Turning smoothly to exit the small room, he began his trek across the lobby. His designer shoes making soft tapping noises as he made his way, and how convenient that it was during one of those rare moments of quiet as the breakfast din cleared out to begin the late lazy noontime. Lisa's head snapped up to his immediate direction, taking in the sight of him.

He held her attention as completely as he would have if he were running at her with his arms flapping while screeching like a moron. Her head tilted ever so slightly, and from the small but guarded smile on her face he could tell that something in his new appearance pleased her. And for some reason, _that_ pleased_ him_.

* * *

Lisa couldn't take her eyes off of the blonde Adonis headed her way, she knew she was smiling but she couldn't stop. She caught his eyes behind a pair of simple framed glasses, and something in them frightened her. Immediately she tensed, her smile dropping slightly. A flutter in the pit of her stomach reminding her she still hadn't broken eye contact, so she swiftly blinked, looking down at the book in front of her. She could feel her cheeks burning as he approached the desk.

Why the hell did Cynthia have to take lunch early today? She composed herself and put on her manager smile. She closed the book as she looked up at him, "Good afternoon Sir, Welcome to the Lux Atlantic, how may I help you today?"

He smiled politely, fighting the grin he wanted to show. "Good day, Checking in please."

She nodded and looked to the computer, "Name Sir?"

He chuckled, making her smile. "Greyson, Nolan." An uncertain look in her eye did not go unnoticed by him, and he briefly wondered if she recognized him, perhaps not fully. He could feel the thickness in the air between them and he could tell from the look in her eye she felt it too. Her guard was up as she ticked away at the keys.

A breathy 'oh...' escaped her lips as the newly remodeled and only recently opened room popped up oh her screen. Keefe's favorite suite. Her eyes flicked to him momentarily, questioning him silently before looking down and scrolling through the reservation information. He was alone, with one of the largest rooms in her hotel all to himself. She couldn't help wanting to know more about him, something made her uneasy even as she felt an intense attraction to him. That was the only possible reason she had blushed for the first time in over a year.

"ID please?" She asked politely, looking up and catching his eyes again. Her breath hitched as he handed her the card and looked her deeply in the eyes.

"Have we met before?" He ventured out, trying to bait her into telling him how much she recognized of him. It was a dangerous move, he knew, but he had to know. Her nervous smile worried him for a second, but his fears were laid to rest as she subtly let out a breath.

"No Sir I don't believe we have. Perhaps you've seen me around, I have my fingers in a lot of things around this place." Her nervous giggle made him raise an eyebrow, a slow smile creeping over his angled features. Mmmm... Wonderful, he loved that he was getting under her skin so easily... He knew it must rankle her skirt to be having such a reaction to him... All put together Lisa obviously having a hard time with herself, if the light tint in her cheeks when she looked at him was any indication. It gave him immense pleasure to see her confused discomfort in his presence.

" Please Lisa, Call me Nolan." A charming smile lit his face up as she shot a cautious look his way.

"How did you...?" He pointed at the id tag hanging from her shirt and she let out a tinkling laugh, " Ok, Nolan, then. Your suite is ready, would you like me to ring for someone to gather your things?" Her head tilted slightly as she handed his fraudulent id back to him.

"No thank you, I'm traveling light." She nodded her head slightly.

"Ok then, let me get you your room key and you'll be all set." She flashed him a bright smile as she turned around and headed to the back room to grab a key card. Upon returning she found him in deep conversation with a newly returned Cynthia, who was obviously charmed already. Lisa cleared her throat, making the redhead jump.

"Oh Lisa there you are! Sorry I'm late, but I was just telling Mr. Greyson here how gracious of a manager you are!" Her perky smile was contagious and Lisa couldn't be mad at her. She didn't miss his cocky smirk from the corner of her eye as she narrowed them at the girl jokingly.

"Is that so?" Cynthia had the good grace to blush, and she was about to respond before Jackson politely interrupted.

"Actually yes. I was complimenting your swift and concise service and she was merely expanding on my thoughts." He grinned at her blush. Flirting with her was part of the plan. What he felt in his gut seeing it directed at him, after a year of dreaming about the many ways he could slowly watch the life drain out of her face, was not. He _liked_ that she seemed to have an attraction to him, liked the mystery of lying to her even as he knew how much he took pride in honesty. While he could easily lie to her, he knew better than to lie to himself. Rationalizing it with the simple satisfaction of an operation going according to plan was only an excuse. He disgusted himself, emotions of this sort were not conducive to his lifestyle.

Hence the point of this little excursion back into her life.

He wouldn't leave any loose ends this time.

Not unless he wanted to become one.


End file.
